Remnants
by distraught.hallelujah
Summary: Hinata Hyuuga is seeing a ghostly image in reflective surfaces. Can she unravel the mystery of this ghost girl apparition, or is it just her mind playing tricks on her? And does it have anything to do with an old necklace, or is it just a coincidence? Rated T for some violence, brief language, mild suggestive material, and slightly disturbing mental images. Naru/Hina pairing.
1. Nat's Last Tear

Chapter One

Nat's Last Tear

Her name was Nat. Her favorite pastime was dangling upside-down from trees and meditating under waterfalls on cold days. She died on the day before her sixteenth birthday just outside the Village Hidden in Snow. People say her spirit haunts the snow banks, ever waiting for the dawn of her birthday that never comes. Nat had been a curious young lady, who never smiled unless something especially pleased her and never cried without good reason. They say her last tear was shed as she fell to the bloodied snow, and the tear turned into a beautiful jewel.

The jewel, fables say, was called 'Nat's Last Tear.' This gemstone with the marvelous story behind it traveled through the royal family, until the royal family fell and the jewel was stolen by bandits. The bandit leader had the gem inlaid into the hilt of a sword. In the sword's very first fight, the jewel fell from the hilt as the leader was slaughtered. The jewel fell into a crack in the earth and was found by a seagull searching for crustaceans. The jewel was carried across a lake by the seagull until the seagull died without warning and the jewel was dropped into the First Hokage's lap in the Village Hidden in Leaves.

When the First Hokage died, the jewel somehow found its way to the Uchiha Clan, where it was carried by Shisui Uchiha. The jewel fell into a river when Itachi Uchiha murdered Shisui, his best friend, in cold blood during his pursuit for power. The jewel lay at the bottom of the river, waiting to be picked up by whoever dared.

And then, on the dawn of summer in the Village Hidden in Leaves, it found its way to the hands of a young girl called Hinata Hyuuga. Hinata was a member of the Hyuuga Clan head family and a ninja in the Village Hidden in Leaves. Instead of bringing bad luck, however, the jewel flourished in her possession. Nat's Last Tear became a source of protection for Hinata, unlike any of the previous owners. Perhaps it was simply a matter of gender, perhaps Nat's spirit in the jewel saw the goodness in the little girl's heart; nobody knew.

But the jewel had to awaken at some point, and when it did, bloodshed was certain.

* * *

Hinata hummed as she headed up the river with an armful of sticks. The sticks were for a trick that Kiba and Akamaru, her teammates, were planning on performing. Hinata wasn't sure what they planned, but she hoped it wasn't anything like Akamaru's 'Dynamic Marking'; marking trees from midair. At least he was a dog. You wouldn't see Kiba doing the same thing. Hinata shivered at the thought. Thank heavens he wasn't _that_doglike.

Her other teammate was Shino Aburame, a Parasite Insect Handler from the Aburame Clan. Hinata admitted that no one really knew a lot about him.

Hinata paused, and her eyes were somehow dragged to the surface of the water. There was a moment of silence as her eyes scanned the surface for movement that she was sure she had seen moments before. When there was nothing, her eyes went back to the ground in front of her and she started walking again.

There was a sudden cold shiver that ran up and down her spine, a burst of malevolence that Hinata was certain was not her own. She gasped and dropped the wood as her eyes flicked immediately to the water and the pale face that reflected on the surface. She expected there to be a face, but she had expected it to be her own. The staring girl reflected in the water with an expression neither sad nor happy was most definitely not her own. Hinata hesitated.

The girl's eyes smoldered with an unquenchable fire that seemed to reach out to Hinata, begging to be freed. Hinata had no idea what was going on, but her eyes were wide with fear as cold sweat trickled down her neck and the hairs at the nape of her neck stood up tall, as though a warning.

"Hinata?"

The hand on her shoulder was too sudden. Without time to think, Hinata whipped around at lightning speed, bringing her hands up. Her hands made contact with her attacker's chest in a non-vital spot, and then her two fingers soared smoothly for the chakra point just above the attacker's heart thanks to her Byakugan, the White Eye, that could see the flow and points of chakra in a human body.

Her hand shuddered to a stop with no room to spare. Her fingers just brushed Kiba's shirt before she was able to wrench them away with no harm done. Kiba's eyes were wide as he took a quick step back in surprise and Hinata's hand recoiled.

"Kiba!" she exclaimed. "I'm so sorry… I didn't know it was you…"

"Are you okay, Hinata?" Kiba asked, putting a hand to his chest where Hinata had struck two non-vital chakra points. It might not kill, but it ached like the headache you'd get from a clogged up nose with nowhere to go. Kiba was looking at Hinata worriedly, but his face looked pained.

"I-I'm fine," Hinata stammered. Shino appeared quickly, standing on the branch of a tree up ahead, one hand dangling freely at his waist and his other hand on the tree for balance. Hinata tapped her pointer fingers together in an embarrassed fashion, not meeting their eyes, as Kiba stretched out a little in an effort to release the pent-up feeling in his chest.

"I was just wondering what was taking so long," he said, cocking his head. "You look pale. Are you sick or something?"

"No, I just…" Hinata didn't want to tell her teammates that she had seen something, not until she was sure what it was. It had to have been a simple trick of the light or something. It can't have been herself and certainly not a real person. "I'm just tired," she invented, blushing slightly. "I'm sorry to worry you. I didn't sleep well last night."

Kiba blinked. Shino said nothing but, knowing him, he probably knew that Hinata was lying. Kiba shrugged.

"In that case, go get some sleep," he said graciously. Hinata shook her head vehemently.

"No, I have to—" she began. Kiba held up a hand to stop her.

"You're tired, so go to bed," he said firmly. "It makes no sense for a ninja to work if a ninja isn't at his best. I wouldn't be looking after my teammate if I let my teammate work half-asleep; you could hurt yourself just throwing a kunai knife or something. Go home and take a nice long nap, and don't you dare come back until you're well-rested or I'll have Akamaru eat you."

Hinata gulped. Kiba never changed his mind and, although Akamaru hadn't been known to eat people, Hinata wouldn't put it past the pony-sized ninja hound. She nodded gratefully.

"Okay, then," she said a little awkwardly. "Um… thank you, Kiba-kun…"

"Yeah, yeah, just go already," Kiba said dismissively. "We'll see you tomorrow."

"I'll be back sooner than that!" Hinata said eagerly. "I've still got to help you collect wood like you asked, and then meet up with Neji-kun later to train some more, and then I have to make a snack for Naruto-kun because sometimes he forgets to eat while he's training in the afternoons…"

"Hinata, take a day off," Kiba said exasperatedly. "You're always helping someone or other. I think it's time you had some time for yourself. Go shopping with Ino and Sakura, or whatever you girls do in your spare time. Go to a hot spring or pick a bench and ogle cute guys that walk by just because of their abs. I don't care what you do. Have fun."

"I agree," Shino spoke up from his spot against the tree. He hopped down and landed neatly on both feet on the ground, his unnerving eyes hidden behind his sunglasses. His hands were hidden in his pockets. "Take a day off, Hinata."

"But… but…" Hinata had no arguments, it all sounded wonderful, but she still felt she had duties that she just couldn't abandon. Besides, Kiba could be very persuasive at the best of times. Kiba never backed down, Hinata knew that much. He wasn't the giving-up type. Anyway, just the fact that Shino also had a say in the matter made it weigh even more heavily on Hinata's shoulders. Finally, she gave up.

"Okay," she said in a small voice. "Thank you."

"Don't thank us, thank yourself," Kiba said, making shooing motions. "Now scat."

"Thank you," Hinata repeated, smiling, and then turned. She headed down the path still smiling, feeling glad that her friends cared about her. Though the face she had seen in the water worried her, she'd have to put it aside for now, because this day was all for fun.

Behind her, Kiba cursed as he rubbed his chest harder.

"Man, Hinata might be a shy little girl," he groaned. "But she can pack a punch behind that little blush! I can barely breathe!"

"Hinata is strong," Shino admitted. "She's very brave, and extraordinarily strong, perhaps even stronger than us and her will stronger than all of us combined. If her heart were any larger, Hinata would probably need a bigger chest."

"She could use a nice rack," Kiba admitted thoughtfully. Shino gave him a gaze so cold and so level that Kiba could've sworn a blizzard swarmed behind those dark sunglasses.

"You had better be talking about a lamb," Shino said darkly.

"What lamb?" Kiba asked innocently.

* * *

Hinata sighed as she pulled off her jacket and folded it very carefully before laying it over the chair. She hummed as she ran her fingers through her long dark hair, and then she headed for her bed. She stopped for a moment, her head turning slightly to look sidelong at the tall mirror that leaned against her wall. She saw herself reflected in the glass.

She sighed. Sometimes she wished she was thin like Ino or had lots of friends like Sakura, but even she admitted that she simply didn't have enough courage to make new friends. On her first day in Team Kurenai, she had refused to even look at her new teammates, but slowly she had warmed up to them. Now, they were here closest friends. Hinata smiled at her reflection, and then frowned. Her reflection had not smiled back. Surely that was strange?

Then the face on the reflection changed. Hinata's eyes widened in fright as the face changed to the pale, neutral expression that she had seen in the river, and the cold eyes. Somehow, the face was still somewhat friendly, even though the expression remained neutral and cold. The girl in the mirror had a very slim body and seemed quite fragile, and her lips were nearly the same pale color as the rest of her skin, bloodless and nearly as white as a sheet. She looked… Hinata hated to think it, dead.

The girl moved for the first time. One of her thin, almost skeletal hands raised and then the girl in the mirror waved. The girl's face did not break out in an inviting smile, and Hinata did not see the girl's eyes change intent where the hatred still burned furiously, but somehow Hinata knew that the hatred wasn't directed at her. Hinata hesitantly raised a hand to wave back.

The girl in the mirror nodded satisfactorily and then her hand dropped a little bit until her hand brushed against her open collar. The girl pulled out a long chain that ran through her fingers until the pendant swayed in the air, back and forth, the small jewel reflecting the dull afternoon light. Hinata found herself reaching into her own collar as though in a trance. The girl nodded reassuringly, clasping the jewel firmly in one hand.

Hinata slowly brought out the jewel on the chain that she had had from a young age, ever since she had found the pretty pebble. The ghost of a girl in the mirror nodded even more firmly, and then mimed shattering the jewel. Hinata's eyes widened slightly.

"Stay away from me," she whispered, trembling. She shut her eyes, but the girl's pale face haunted the darkness behind her eyelids. "Go away!" Hinata shrieked, and raced to her bed, burying her face in her pillow and sobbing uncontrollably. The girl in the mirror had disappeared as soon as Hinata's reflection had moved away from the mirror, but Hinata's hand trembled on the jewel that hung from her neck.

Images danced in Hinata's mind, frightening images. There was one happy one, of a memory watching children play. They were upside down, or Hinata supposed whoever's memory it was had remembered it upside down. It certainly wasn't Hinata's memory.

Then Hinata saw a basket lying on the snow, a basket with a single white rose in it. There was a hand that lay unmoving held just above the basket, blood dripping down the middle finger onto the rose, staining the white rose red with the person's blood. The memory travelled slowly up the arm to a still body that lay in the bloodied snow. Hinata tried to close her eyes so as to not see it anymore, but her eyes were already closed. These were simply images in her mind, inescapable images.

Hinata screamed, her hands clutching her head and she curled into a ball. She hated it, she wanted it to stop, but the memory still unfurled.

There was the stone, glittering just below the slightly turned face of the dead girl. The stone that Hinata recognized as the same one the girl held up in the mirror, the same jewel Hinata had hanging from her neck. Hinata reached up a hand and violently tore the chain from her throat, then stood up.

She crossed the room in three strides, threw open the door, and raced into the yard. Without a jacket or shoes, she ran across the yard and into the street, and then continued down the street. The necklace was clutched so firmly in her hand that the sharp point of the vaguely teardrop-shaped crystal dug into her flesh, and her palm bled.

Before realizing it, Hinata had run straight past Neji's house and the yard where he trained. Her state of distress was so apparent that even Neji could hear her from the yard. Frowning, he opened the gate and watched confusedly as he saw his cousin race by in a craze, tears streaming down her face, her eyes wide with fright. With strong mixed emotions, Neji raced after her and caught her arm. Hinata stopped suddenly and fell to her knees in the dust. Neji knelt beside her and, though hesitant, allowed her to cry on his shoulder in the middle of the street, his hand on her back comfortingly, and let her cry until his shirt was wet with her tears.

* * *

"She should be fine now," Sakura said as she slowly shut the door to Hinata's room. In the hallway, a multitude of people had gathered. Naruto, Kiba, Neji, and Shino were there, as well as some neighbors who had seen Hinata running by. Hinata had cried herself to sleep against Neji until finally someone could send for a medical ninja, and Sakura had come as quickly as she could.

"I think she's just tired," Sakura explained. "She should be fine after she's had a good night's sleep. Oh…"

Neji, whose face had begun to melt with relief, suddenly was worried at the afterthought he heard coming. Sakura held up a hand and uncurled her fingers to reveal the glistening jewel on a long chain that she held in her palm.

"Neji," she asked, looking up at him. "Do you know what this is? She was holding it very tightly in her hand. I had to pry it out, but I feel that somehow this necklace is important."

Neji was confused, but tried to answer as best as he could.

"It's a pebble Lady Hinata found in a river one day," he explained. "Her father made it into a necklace for her, and she's worn it ever since. It's almost a security blanket, you could say. Lady Hinata told me it makes her feel safe and almost braver when she wears it."

"Hm." Sakura's fingers curled back around the jewel, and she frowned slightly. She looked back up. "Her mirror was shattered," she said in a dead tone. "Can anyone give me a clue as to why that would be?"

Neji shook his head woefully, and of course Kiba and Shino had not seen her since she left for home. Naruto had only arrived with Sakura when he heard that Hinata had had a nervous breakdown. Sakura nodded. She turned to Neji and offered him the necklace.

"Please give that to her when she wakes up," Sakura said, dropping the necklace into Neji's outstretched hand. "I think she'll want it."

"Thank you for your help," Neji said gratefully, taking the necklace. He looked down at the gem that glittered faintly in his palm, then his hand closed around it and he looked back up at Sakura. "Would you like me to contact you when she wakes up?"

"I don't think that would be necessary," Sakura said dismissively. "She should be fine when she wakes up. If she's still like that, though, then maybe you should call for a medical ninja. I'll ask Lady Tsunade about her opinion if I get the chance later. Oh, and Neji; when she wakes up, you should ask her a few questions like what her name is and who you are. If she can answer them okay, then hopefully she's calmed down enough to explain what happened. If not, she may need to keep resting."

"I understand," Neji replied, nodding. "I will see to it that Lady Hinata gets plenty of rest. Thanks again, Sakura-san."

"No problem," Sakura said graciously. She nodded to herself, smiled a farewell, gave a little wave, and headed down the hall towards the front door. The door slid open and Sakura disappeared outside, the door sliding gently shut behind her.

"If I had known it was that bad, I would've had her go home way before now," Kiba muttered. Neji turned to him, smiling slightly.

"It's not your fault," he said. "I'm sure Lady Hinata will be fine by the time she wakes up. Thank you for worrying about her, but I'm certain that she'll recover in no time."

"Yeah," Kiba agreed, although he didn't sound fully convinced.

"Come on, Kiba," Shino said softly, putting a hand on his teammate's shoulder. "Let's go. We can come back when Hinata wakes up, if the Hyuuga family doesn't mind."

Kiba nodded and, with one last lingering look at the door to Hinata's room, he followed Shino down the hall towards the door. Naruto sat down firmly, crossed his arms, and pouted. Neji knew this was most likely one of _those_ times. Naruto would probably stay there in that spot until Hinata woke up. Neji reluctantly admitted that meeting Naruto was really the turning point for Hinata, and that after that Hinata was significantly more confident, especially after the Chunin Exam all those years back. Neji knew they were good friends, and that Naruto cared for his friends more than he did himself.

Neji smiled slightly. He was glad that Hinata had a friend like Naruto on her side; hopefully with his beckoning, Hinata couldn't help but wake up. Naruto was nothing if not loud, and could probably wake up even an old drunk in a crowded bar. Actually, that was certain – Master Jiraiya had been woken up a number of times, and if he wasn't an old drunk, Neji didn't know who was.

Neji sat down beside Naruto, his eyes set on the bedroom door in front of him. When his cousin woke up, he would be by her side, too. He hoped this was his chance to make up for all the ignoring or loathing he had directed to her, all the pain he had caused her in the past when he resented her just because she was born to the head family and Neji himself was part of the branch family. It didn't matter to him anymore. When Neji became a Jonin, Hinata wished him the best of luck. Hinata never wished ill will towards anyone; that was just the way she was. Gentle, compassionate, and an amazing friend.

A cousin was a cousin, and Hinata was even more like a sister to Neji than a cousin, although she really nearly was a sister seeing as it was her father who had taken care of Neji after his father had died. Neji hoped he could make it up to her somehow, even if the bridge was too far to cross by now. He hoped that Hinata knew how much he cared for her, as though she really was the little sister he never had.


	2. Haunted

Chapter Two

Haunted

"I am a terrible person."

Kiba sat with his face in his hands on a bench by the side of the street near Hinata's house. When he didn't get the answer he was looking for, he repeated the phrase.

"I am a terrible person."

"Yes, you are," Shino replied dully from his spot, leaning casually against the lamppost.

"I am a horrible friend."

"Mm-hmm."

"My sister hates me. Kurenai-sensei hates me. Hinata hates me. Everyone hates me."

"Probably."

Kiba's head shot up, and he scowled.

"You're not supposed to agree with me," he said scornfully. "You're supposed to assure me that it's not my fault and that everything will be okay, and that I'm none of those things and that I'm a great friend and Hinata will still like me when she wakes up."

"But you see," Shino continued. "Everything I said before, all together, was less than what you just told me you wanted me to say. It isn't your fault, of course, but you should know that. Why do you need me to tell you? Anyway, I don't think _everyone_ hates you. Maybe just a few people, and that's only because you're loud."

"I'm loud?" Kiba repeated, shocked. "Me?"

"Yes, very," Shino said, nodding. "Your constantly cheerful and headstrong personality can get on people's nerves sometimes. For some reason, I'm inclined to believe that there are people who agree with me. Enthusiasm isn't a crime, but you sometimes sound like you work under Guy-sensei and not Kurenai-sensei."

"It's that bad?" Kiba asked, crestfallen.

"Maybe," Shino said agreeably. Kiba sighed.

"If Hinata would just talk to us more," he said woefully. "How could I know she wasn't sleeping and worked herself too hard? I mean, I know she did a lot of training with us a while back, but I thought she stopped. She got significantly stronger, too, especially with her Byakugan. She'll probably be stronger than Neji someday."

"I think that's her goal, or, rather, her Way of Ninja," Shino said thoughtfully. "To protect her friends, just like Naruto. They're becoming increasingly closer, you know. Hinata likes him."

"Who, Naruto?" Kiba asked, aghast.

"Yes, Naruto," Shino said, his eyebrows coming down slightly. "I still can't believe he didn't remember me. I mean, he recognized Hinata and you right away."

"Hinata and Naruto?" Kiba repeated, staring into the distance. He was completely ignoring Shino. "Hinata and Naruto… I could see that. Hey, who do you like? I mean, there's got to be a girl you think is cute, right?"

"No," Shino said tersely.

"Come on," Kiba wheedled. "I'll tell you who I like if you tell me who you like!"

Shino hesitated.

"I don't like anyone," he said. Kiba wasn't fooled.

"Come on, tell me or I'm going to start telling everyone that you're in love with Lady Tsunade!" Kiba warned.

"That's blackmail!" Shino replied sharply. "Besides, the Hokage is at least thirty years older than me. That's disgusting."

"She doesn't look it," Kiba said. "Come on, tell me who you like!"

"… Taylor Swift," Shino replied finally, after a moment of silence. Kiba frowned, and Shino sighed. "She's an American singer," he explained. "She's very beautiful, and her songs are very emotional."

"That's weird, man," Kiba said matter-of-factly.

"Is it?" Shino asked curiously.

"Yeah, very. Let me guess – she's blond, isn't she?"

"Maybe. What does that have to do with anything?"

"I always thought… I don't know, you and Ino," Kiba said thoughtfully.

"Is this really the right time to be talking about girls?" Shino said disapprovingly. "Besides, where would you get that from? There's nothing between me and Yamanaka-san."

"You can say that all you like, but you can't fool me," Kiba said, elbowing Shino playfully in the side. Shino stared him down, and Kiba cleared his throat and sat back down. "Anyway," Kiba said hurriedly. "There's no one I like around here. I used to have a crush on Kurenai-sensei, but that was a long time ago. You know, before I found out that she was could kick butt, and kick butt hard. I decided it'd be safer for me if I forgot about it."

"Kurenai-sensei?" Shino repeated. "Hm. I see what you mean. For an adult, Kurenai-sensei is marginally attractive, but a teacher/student relationship is just that – **only** a teacher/student relationship."

"This isn't the time to be talking about girls, though," Kiba said dismissively, nodding loftily. "Shino, shame on you. How could you think about girls when our teammate is sick in bed?"

"Shame on me?" Shino shook his head disbelievingly. "You are so full of it."

* * *

Hinata's eyes fluttered open. Her breath caught in her throat for a moment as the memories of what happened came flooding back. She remembered Neji, and she blushed slightly. Poor Neji! She hadn't meant to drag him into that. How was she going to explain the reflection now? She couldn't…

"Lady Hinata?"

There was a soft knock at the door. Hinata hesitated.

"Yes?" she asked shyly. Her voice broke.

The sliding door slid open slowly and Neji appeared, watching Hinata concernedly. He entered the room and shut the door slowly behind him. Hinata's brother, as she had come to think of him as, pulled up a chair and sat by her bed.

"What's your name?" he asked. Hinata's eyebrows furrowed slightly, wondering why he was asking a strange question like that.

"Hinata Hyuuga," she replied. Neji nodded.

"And do you remember who I am?" he asked. Hinata was upset. How could she forget her cousin so easily? Surely Neji didn't believe that Hinata would forget about him so easily? Hinata reached out and took Neji's hand, and Neji looked down at her hand in his, surprised.

"You're my brother," she said softly. Neji looked back up at Hinata, his eyes wide in surprise. Then he smiled slightly, and his fingers curled around her hand. Hinata smiled back as she leaned back against her bed.

"Oh," Neji said suddenly, reaching with his free hand towards his pocket. "Sakura thought you might want this back when you woke up." He held up the necklace, and Hinata nodded and took it gratefully. She was about to thank him when the door slammed open with about as much noise as a falling tree, and both Neji and Hinata jumped in surprise. Hinata looked in shock at the doorway, where Naruto Uzumaki stood. She knew Naruto well enough – she had had a pretty obvious crush on him since her junior days at the Academy. But now he was here, in her room?

Hinata's face flushed, and she suddenly felt weak.

"N-N-Naruto-kun," she stammered softly, her eyes wide with embarrassment. Surely she had not caused him trouble as well? Neji was family, so that wasn't _so_ bad, but how could she bring Naruto into this?

"Naruto," Neji said chidingly. "Please don't be so loud. Lady Hinata's still recovering."

"Hinata!" Naruto exclaimed. Hinata's blush spread furiously all the way to her hairline.

"Um… y-yes?" she asked.

"How are you?" Naruto asked eagerly. "Did you sleep enough? Did you get enough rest? Are you okay now? How do you feel?"

"I-I'm fine," Hinata was able to say. Neji frowned slightly, looking down at her hand in his. Her hand was squeezing his so hard that barely any blood was getting to his fingers. Neji looked back up at Hinata, whose face was visibly pink.

"I heard what happened," Naruto continued enthusiastically. "You get better fast, okay? Do you need anything? Is there anything I can get you?"

"No," Hinata said quickly. "I'm fine, really. Er…"

"Are you sure? Anything at all, I'll go get it for you," Naruto offered. Hinata blushed. This was one of the reasons she liked Naruto. First of all, it was he who helped Hinata break out of her shell and harden her own will, hopefully to someday have a will as strong as his. Naruto also cared for his friends very much, and he was so helpful.

"Um… I would be grateful for a drink of water." Hinata wasn't sure what possessed her to say it, but Naruto obviously wanted to do something for her so much that Hinata said the first thing that came to mind. She _was_ pretty thirsty. Immediately, Naruto had disappeared out of the room. Hinata was happy before she heard the crashing sounds.

"I'll show him the way to the kitchen," Neji sighed. "It sounds like he's somewhere around the cellar stairs. You'll be okay for a minute or so?"

Hinata nodded. She'd like to think she'd be fine without anyone at the moment, although it was certainly a pleasing feeling to have two wonderful and loyal friends such as them looking after her. Hinata smiled as Neji disappeared out the door after Naruto, and she leaned back against the pillows with a sigh of contentment, having momentarily forgotten all about the reason for her panic. Before she knew it, realizing that she wasn't thinking about it got her thinking about it once more.

She certainly wondered who it could be that she saw in the mirror, and how it was connected to the necklace she wore. She looked down at her hand, which held the necklace, and sighed softly. How come this girl was in Hinata's reflection? Did it have something to do with the necklace, or were they completely separate? After all, she had had the necklace for a long time before she started seeing the girl, so maybe they weren't connected at all. Hinata was deep in thought when Naruto burst in with a glass of water, which he offered to Hinata triumphantly.

Hinata looked up at Naruto in surprise, and then took it gratefully.

"Thank you," she said as she raised it to her lips. The moment just before the rim of the glass touched her skin, the water's surface rippled and the reflection of Hinata's eye was replaced by the hating eyes of the mysterious girl. For some reason, the eyes did not burn with as much hatred as they had before, and almost seemed tender, but it was still unnerving finding someone else's eyes in your water glass.

And that sounded really bad when Hinata thought about it, too! Her thirst suddenly quenched, she put the glass carefully down on her bedside table without drinking from it, her eyes sorrowful. The images she had seen – of the bloodstained rose, the jewel in the snow, the body of the dead girl – still vividly replayed over and over again in her mind. She couldn't shake the feeling that somehow there was more to it.

"What's wrong?" Naruto asked immediately. Hinata should've just drunk the water, she knew, but how could she explain to her friend and crush that she was seeing ghosts now? That she'd finally gone 'round the bend? She, Hinata Hyuuga, had finally gone insane?

"Nothing," Hinata said, forcing a smile onto her face. "I'm fine, really. Thank you for the water. I'm just a little… tired. I'd like to rest a little more, if you don't mind."

"Of course," Naruto said quickly. "I'll be outside, so just call if you need me, okay?"

Hinata smiled to herself.

"Don't worry about me," she said. "Go home and rest yourself. You must be tired."

"Not really," Naruto admitted with a sheepish smile. "I was sleeping in the hall when you woke up, so I had a nice long nap. It was Neji who stayed awake waiting for you to wake up. It was a lot like Sleeping Beauty."

Remembering the methods of awakening used in the popular tale, Hinata immediately flushed deep red in embarrassment.

"Not really," she said in a tiny voice. "Please, Naruto-kun, you've done enough for me."

"I haven't done anything but get you a glass of water," Naruto said, frowning slightly.

"And fall down the cellar steps," Hinata found herself saying. Despite herself, she almost laughed. Surely Naruto's antics would chase any ghost away? A laughing ghost would be a sight to see, but Hinata wouldn't put it past him.

"Yeah," Naruto admitted. "But still, I'll be outside, so just shout if you need me and I'll come, believe it!"

Knowing that nothing she said would convince the number one hyperactive knucklehead ninja, Hinata helplessly watched him leave the room and shut the door gently behind himself.

As soon as Naruto was gone, Hinata's eyes wandered back to the water glass on her nightstand. Was there something to find out about this strange reflection, or was it just her mind playing tricks on her? Suddenly curious, Hinata reached for the water.

Her hand closed around the glass, and she slowly pulled it towards her, and then looked into the surface. The surface rippled very slightly, and then with a lurching turn, the reflection of the girl appeared. The girl raised her hand as if to reach out to Hinata, and her hand stopped as though hitting a barrier. The curved surface of the water inside the cup very gently rippled where the girl's hand met the invisible barrier, as if only just not of this world. The girl looked back up at Hinata, and then spoke.

"_Nat_," whispered a voice from right beside Hinata's ear. Hinata yelped and whipped around, her hand releasing the water glass. The glass seemed to fall it slow motion before it hit the ground and shattered, water splashing everywhere. As he had promised, the door slammed open and Naruto rushed in, ready to fight enemy ninja or fluff Hinata's pillow, either one would be fine.

Hinata put her hands to her mouth.

"I dropped the glass," she said woefully, raising her hands in a helpless gesture. Naruto looked somewhat suspicious, but Hinata was apparently (though a terrible liar) convincing enough. Naruto knelt to collect the glass.

"Um… Naruto-kun?" Hinata whispered. Naruto looked up.

"Yeah?" he asked.

"Um… could you…? Would you mind… that is to say…?"

"Yeah? What?" Naruto asked eagerly.

"Well, I needed to get a book or two from the library for private study today, and if I'm in bed, would you mind going to collect it for me? No, never mind, it's too much trouble." Hinata looked away. She hated lying to anyone, Naruto especially, but she really needed to figure this out and nobody could help her with this right now.

"I'll get them!" Naruto said quickly. "Which books do you need?"

"Well, I need the unabridged edition of the 'Konohagakure Almanac' and a… er… book on human psychology," Hinata invented. Firstly, the unabridged almanac of anything should be a gigantic and heavy book, and she could actually use a book on human psychology.

"Okay," Naruto said, pursing his lips in thought. "Unabridged Konohagakure Almanac and a book on human psychology; unabridged Konohagakure Almanac and a book on human psychology; unabridged Konohagakure Almanac and a book on human psychology…"

Naruto kept repeating the phrase over and over as he headed out of the room.

* * *

"How is she?" Neji whispered.

"She's okay," Naruto replied. "She broke her glass of water though. Unabridged Konohagakure Almanac and a book on human psychology."

"What?" Neji's eyebrows furrowed in curiosity. Without answering, Naruto continued down the hall towards the front door, still repeating that phrase.

"Unabridged Konohagakure Almanac and a book on human psychology; unabridged Konohagakure Almanac and a book on human psychology; unabridged Konohagakure Almanac and a book on human psychology; unabridged Konohagakure Almanac and a book on human psychology; unabridged Konohagakure Almanac and a book on human psychology; unabridged Konohagakure Almanac and a book on human psychology…"

* * *

Hinata was silent for a moment. Was the voice she had heard her imagination, or something else? And what did 'Nat' mean? She didn't hear the voice anymore, so she uneasily dismissed it as her imagination. However, she needed to find a reflective surface if she could contact the strange girl once more.

The glass of water was in pieces on the floor, and her mirror was broken as well. Hinata had no other reflective surface nearby, she thought. The fact that she might have heard the girl only when looking into the water was strange. Hinata wondered if the girl could speak through her reflection over water, but not in anything else, in which case all Hinata needed was a source of water.

Hinata climbed silently out of bed and reached for the lavender jacket that lay over the chair where she had put it earlier. Knowing her cousin was outside in the hallway; she tiptoed towards the window in the back, jacket in hand. She unlocked the latch and started to pull the window in when the latch popped off in her hand. Hinata tried to grab for it, but the latch hit the ground with a clatter that seemed to her to be as loud as a gunshot.

She winced as her eyes darted to the door, willing Neji not to have heard it. The next few seconds were painfully suspenseful, but the door did not open. Letting out a breath she didn't know she was holding, Hinata climbed silently onto the windowsill and then hopped onto the garden ground below. She landed in a crouch and a feeling of exhilaration shot through her. She, Hinata Hyuuga, was sneaking out of her sickbed and her own house to contact a ghost girl!

Hinata would never have thought that at any point in her life, she would be doing something such as this. Hinata felt oddly excited at the prospect of being a 'bad girl' for once. About half of her was against it, but the other half was all for it. She couldn't fight her rebellious side, so she headed down the street while she stuck her arms into the sleeves of her jacket and zipped it up tightly.

The river she had been near when she had seen the reflection for the first time was close, so it shouldn't take too long to make it there. Hinata headed up the street.

"—so full of it."

Hinata gasped and immediately ducked behind a tree. She peeked out and saw Kiba and Shino by the bench only a few yards ahead, at the street intersection. Hinata gulped. Kiba was a sensory-type ninja, like herself, and he could probably smell her soon if he hadn't caught her scent already. If they saw her, it would probably get a little hectic. Therefore, Hinata had two choices – knock out her friends, or go around them.

She chose the less violent option. Hinata turned around and tiptoed past the tree, praying that they wouldn't see her. She turned and her foot came down on a dry twig. Hinata winced. Why is it that when sneaking around, the most noise is made? When trying to be quiet, the opposite is inevitable? Should she _try_ to make as much noise as an elephant with a cold giving birth?

Shino glanced up slightly, and for a moment Hinata was certain she was caught. Kiba stood up suddenly, and Hinata's spirits plummeted.

"I smell Hinata," he said eagerly.

"It's just your imagination," Shino said firmly, turning away from Hinata. Hinata's breath caught in her throat. Shino, of all people, should know she was there… so was he actually covering for her? Hinata's spirits soared again.

"Are you sure? I think I heard something…" Kiba began to head towards Hinata and Hinata pushed herself harder against the tree, closing her eyes tightly and wishing with all her might.

"It was a hare," Shino said, "forget it. I was thinking about what you said earlier, and I think Kurenai-sensei likes you too."

"What?" Kiba demanded, the 'hare' momentarily forgotten. "You really think that? I don't know… I mean, Kurenai-sensei and Asuma-sensei kind of have their thing going, and she is a lot older than me, and it isn't right, you know, a student and his teacher, no matter how talented and handsome the student is…"

Hinata didn't wait to hear the rest of their conversation. Silently thanking Shino, Hinata broke away from the tree and darted between trees in the opposite direction. When she assumed she was far enough away, she took the extra time to climb a tree and take off across the branches. It was faster than travelling by ground anyway.

Hinata headed around the spot where Kiba and Shino were and used her Byakugan to watch them and make sure they didn't move. Her eyes caught sight of something else, and she found herself glancing in the opposite direction. Almost outside the range of her Byakugan, there was another person's chakra, just waiting. The way the chakra flared, it seemed that it was a ninja, whoever it was. Hinata shook her head. Of course there would be another ninja nearby. The village was full of them. She was just being paranoid.

* * *

"The jewel is nearby. I can feel it."

The dark figure breathed deeply, its eyes closing momentarily as it savored the scent of impending success. Behind the figure, two more figures watched the trees rather warily. They were all men and all dressed in black, and one of them looked down at the ground and gulped, clinging a little more tightly to his tree.

"Um… isn't it a little bit dangerous to… I don't know, break into the ninja stronghold? We're three people, and even the little old men met on the streets could be amazingly powerful Jonin or something… not to mention if the Hokage finds us…" the figure said a little sheepishly, scratching his head. The first man turned back slightly, scowling.

"Getting cold feet, are you, Killer? Despite your nickname, you are a wuss," the man said disapprovingly. The second man hung his head in shame.

"Well, I didn't pick my nickname, you did," he grumbled.

"Take it easy, Saber," the third guy said smoothly. "I mean, Killer doesn't mean anything bad by it. In fact, he has a point. Shouldn't we have lured her out and set a trap rather than go to her?"

"Nat isn't that stupid," the first figure replied. "About 80 years ago, when this village first came into existence, I caught her by surprise. She still went down fighting. She took my left eye while she was at it. Oh well. An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth, I always say; and that's why her 'tear' will be mine. No one understands the power of Nat's lonely spirit and her burning hatred for me sealed inside that tiny little rock. If one knows how to use it, one could rule the world."

"Why the world?" The second man, Killer, whined petulantly. "Why not just a little island in the Caribbean, with hula girls wearing nothing but grass skirts and a coconut and cold pineapple drinks and endless beaches? I'd be happy with just two girls in bikinis _handing_ me a cold drink. The world is a bit much to ask for, don't you—?"

"And that," the first man, Saber, interrupted, "is why I am the mastermind of this operation and you are not. Simply put, you're an idiot."

"So am I, but I don't hear me complaining," the third man said with a mournful sigh. "Killer has a point, though. I could use a cold pineapple drink right now, and correct me if I'm wrong, but I think you could, too. Sometimes you just have to take a step back and look at the world through a pair of sunglasses, and sometimes you'll get lucky and the sun goddess's bikinied bum will get in the way."

"Shut up, Duke," Saber spat. "You're lazy and Killer's an idiot. Why did I choose such idiots for henchmen? Why didn't I hire assassins?"

"Because we're cheap," Duke replied smoothly, "May I remind you we run on a tight budget? That's probably why you're trying to steal some necklace from a little girl anyway, and not even a Caribbean island can sway your mind. Maybe I'll take over Florida someday. That'd be nice."

"Florida has mosquitos," Killer reminded him philosophically. "And crocodiles, or maybe alligators – I forget which is which."

"Well, I'm not about to take over Alaska," Duke replied, aghast. "Although, you never know; those huskies are just adorable little buggers, aren't they?"

"From hula girls to bikinis to puppies," Saber sighed, momentarily putting his head in his hands. "Anyway, she's alone now, so we'd better hurry up and get the necklace already; otherwise it'll be too late. Once Nat is able to contact the girl through water, then she'll be freed soon, and once she's freed, Nat will be unstoppable."

"By us, anyway," Duke added cheerfully. "Did you say eighty years ago? Dude, you're ancient. You look great for an old guy."

"Thanks to some… darker methods," Saber said almost smugly, sounding pleased. "I have retained my youth. I did this for a simple reason, which is also why you are here. With your help, I will at last defeat my rival and claim her powers as my own."

* * *

Hinata's light eyes darted across the clearing as her ears picked up the gurgling of the river. Hinata headed into the light quickly, and then dropped to her knees at the river's edge. The necklace fell out of her collar and swung slightly back and forth, the tip just brushing against the surface of the water.

"Hello?" Hinata whispered. The face in the water was her own, which meant that either the girl hadn't appeared yet or for some reason wasn't coming out. So sure, the girl would purposefully startle Hinata at every opportunity by popping up randomly, but when Hinata wants to talk, the girl's gone. Hinata leaned back slightly, her eyebrows furrowing. She watched the surface for a few more seconds, but when nothing happened, she stood up feeling strangely disappointed. Maybe it was just her imagination after all. The memories… they seemed so real, but Hinata supposed she could've really been tired at the time. Maybe it was just a matter of going home and getting more rest.

"_Hinata_."

Hinata's eyes widened. It was the same whispery voice as before. Hinata quickly dropped to her knees, her eyes eagerly searching the surface of the water. Surely this was not her imagination, the face that appeared instead of her own? Surely this was reality, cold and plain in front of her? The girl's face in the water was as neutral as ever except for her cold dark eyes, which still burned with fury. The girl's eyes travelled along the surface of the water in front of her figure.

"_You're_ _alone_?" it asked. Hinata nodded.

"Who… who are you?" she whispered. The figure looked somewhat satisfied as it leaned back slightly. The girl closed her eyes momentarily, as though silently reveling at just existing, or being able to speak. She seemed to be enjoying it, even though not even a bit of enjoyment even momentarily flitted across her face. Her eyes opened again.

"_Nat_," she said. "_It's_ _my_ _name_."

Her voice was heard distantly, as though she was actually under the surface of the water but speaking clearly, separated as though by a ghostly veil.

"Nat?" Hinata repeated.

"_A_ _nickname_," Nat explained with a little laugh. "_Hinata_, _there_ _is_ _something_ _very_ _important_ _I_ _must_ _tell_ _you_, _for_ _your_ _ears_ _and_ _yours_ _alone_. _I_ _want_ _to_ _tell_ _you_… _about_ _the_ _person_ _who_ _killed_ _me_."


	3. Truth Be Told

Chapter Three

Truth Be Told

Hinata frowned slightly. The person who had killed Nat? So… then Nat really was a ghost. Of course she was – what else would haunt a necklace?

"Wait," Hinata said. Nat cocked her head slightly, and the water rippled. "If you're dead, how come you're here? How did you get here?"

"_When_ _I_ _died_," Nat said with a long, slow sigh. "_Well_, _the_ _moment_ _was_ _quite_ _dramatic actually_. _When_ _my_ _body_ _died_, _I_ _sealed_ _my_ _being_ _into_ _a_ _small_ _stone_ _that_ _lay_ _nearby_ _and_ _left_ _my_ _body_ _behind_. _I_ _lived_ _for_ _eighty_ _years_ _inside_ _that_ _stone_ _that_ _now_ _exists_ _at_ _your_ _neck_ _while_ _my_ _murderer_ _hunted_ _me_. _He_ _wanted_ _to_ _claim_ _my_ _power_ _as_ _his_ _own_. _He_ _was_ _angry_ _because_, _even_ _in_ _death_, _I_ _would_ _not_ _give_ _it_ _to_ _him_."

"How could you do that?" Hinata asked in a small voice. Nat looked taken aback.

"_Seal_ _my_ _being_ _into_ _the_ _stone_?" Nat asked. "_It_ _was_ _not_ _easy_. _The_ _first_ _twenty_ _years_ _in_ _the_ _stone_ _I_ _spent_ _recuperating_ _after_ _I_ _used_ _up_ _all_ _my_ _strength_ _to_ _move_ _my_ _consciousness_ _into_ _this_ _jewel_. _The_ _only_ _problem_ _now_ _is_ _that_ _I_ _don't_ _have_ _a_ _body_ _to_ _return_ _to_, _and_ _am_ _only_ _alive_ _in_ _reflections_. _Out_ _of_ _my_ _time_ _here_, _sixty_ _years_ _was_ _spent_ _gathering_ _chakra_. _This_ _jewel_ _is_ _like_ _a_ _supernova_ _of_ _power_. _However_, _Hinata_, _I_ _need_ _you_ _to_ _break_ _the_ _jewel_."

"Break it? But won't that kill you? Or, rather, release your consciousness into the nothingness, or however it works?" Hinata asked, frowning.

"_Stop_ _asking_ _questions_, _little_ _girl_," Nat said, sounding slightly upset. "_You_ _can_ _never_ _understand_ _what_ _it_ _was_ _like_ _being_ _trapped_ _here_ _for_ _eighty_ _years_. _Right_ _now_, _I_ _am_ _confined_ _to_ your _reflection_. _If_ _you_ _break_ _the_ _stone_, _I_ _can_ _exist_ _in_ _the_ _reflection_ _of_ anything. _I_ _can_ _only_ _speak_ _to_ _you_ _as_ _your_ _reflection_ _on_ _water_, _don't_ _ask_ _me_ _why_. _It_ _must_ _have_ _something_ _to_ _do_ _with_ _the_ _way_ _sound_ _travels_ _through_ _water_ _molecules_."

Hinata leaned back slightly, staring into the distance as her mind processed this remarkable information. She was glad she wasn't crazy, but the little voice in the back of her head, the part of her that was always cautious, was somewhat upset. After all, Nat could be lying, and if Hinata broke the stone, something terrible could happen.

"_I_ _know_," Nat said suddenly. Hinata looked back down. Nat's eyes did not meet Hinata's. "_I_ _know_ _you_ _probably_ _are_ _afraid_ _to_ _do_ _anything_ _I_ _tell_ _you_," Nat said, her eyes coming up. Her eyes no longer burned with hatred, but pleaded silently. "_But_ _what_ _if_ _I_ _told_ _you_ _that_ _my_ _murderer_ _is_ _on_ _his_ _way_ _here_ _right_ _now_ _to_ _tear_ _my_ _essence_ _from_ _your neck_? _He_ _will_ _take_ _it_ _even_ _if_ _your_ _neck_ _is_ _still_ _attached_. _He_ _wishes_ _to_ _tap_ _the_ _reserve_ _of_ _chakra_ _that_ _I_ _have_ _saved_. _Sixty_ _years_' _worth_ _of_ _chakra_ _is_ _a_ _large_ _amount_, _probably_ _that_ _of_ _a_ _ninja_ _army_. _One_ _man_ _with_ _all_ _that_ _power_ _could_ _do_ _almost_ _whatever_ _he_ _wanted_."

"Tell me," Hinata said slowly. "What happened? How were you driven to letting go of your body and sealing yourself inside a stone? I want to know what happened eighty years ago, when it all started."

"_It's_ _a_ _long_ _story_," Nat said woefully. "_However_, _it_ _may_ _be_ _important_. _If_ _you_ _want_ _to_ _hear_ _it_, _I_ _will_ _tell_ _you_ _before_ _he_ _arrives_. _I_ _only_ _hope_ _I_ _can_ _finish_ _the_ _tale_ _in_ _time_."

"Please do tell me," Hinata asked, leaning in closer. "I want to know how I can help you, but I need to know the whole story before I can break the stone for you."

Nat paused, her eyes searching Hinata's resolved face. Nat nodded slowly.

"_Very_ _well_," she said. "_Listen_ _closely_."

* * *

"It was summer in what would later become the Village Hidden in Snow, where I lived. I probably wouldn't recognize it today if I ever went back, but summer wasn't much different from the winter days except for the number of snowstorms. Back then, my family and I lived in a large house. We weren't particularly wealthy, but we weren't poor either. My father was a samurai who worked for the daimyo. It was just me, my parents, and my grandparents. Around that time, my mother announced that she was pregnant.

"Of course I was happy for her. I wanted a little brother or sister very much, as I was lonely in those days. I went to the Ninja Academy in the village and trained hard so that I would be able to protect the newest addition to our family. The day before my sixteenth birthday, I was excused from class – my mother was in labor at the hospital. I was so happy, words couldn't begin to describe how I felt. And even better, we would have nearly the same birthday, if not exactly! As I headed home, however, I decided to stop by a greenhouse near the edge of the village to get flowers for my mother, as congratulations.

"On my way home with the snow rose I had for my mother, I was stopped by a man. I didn't know who he was and I was scared, but I kept my cool. I asked him if there was anything I could help him with. He asked me where the daimyo's castle was. I was immediately suspicious, guessing the truth in a moment. He was an enemy ninja, probably come to murder the daimyo. I knew what I had to do. I silently pulled my hitai-ate from my basket and tied it neatly around my forehead to face this foe. I explained to him that my father was a warrior and that I would not let him by, that I swore it on my life. I was a Chunin by then, but I had no doubt that I could at least deal him serious damage. I said my prayers at that moment.

"We fought. To make a long story short, I was able to seriously wound the side of his face, and his eye was unusable. He was a Fire Style user and I was an Ice Style user, but he was just stronger than me and so, after a long, tiring battle, he won. As I lay dying, I tried to forgive him, but I just couldn't. Then he leaned down close and told me that he would never forgive me for taking his eye, and that he would find my family and give them his greetings. I knew what that meant, and I wasn't about to let it happen. In my dying breath, my hatred for him giving me strength, I was able to somehow transfer my chakra and consciousness into a pebble nearby.

"I was too weak to do anything and lay there in silence, but the man saw what I had done. Knowing that he could feed off of my strength, his greed for power possessed him and he decided to take the jewel. However, he was interrupted by the ninja from the Village Hidden in Snow, who had felt the chakra presence of our fight and arrived as quickly as they could. I watched in silence as they chased off the strange man, and the next thing I knew, I found myself in the daimyo's hands. The jewel I inhabited was the only memory left of the brave kunoichi who protected the village with her life, an honorable death for a young Shinobi.

"The daimyo explained to my parents what he thought had happened, I gathered that much. I did not see my funeral, and I never saw my baby sibling's face. I did not even know if it was a boy or a girl. I was still weak, and for twenty years I stored up strength until finally I was able to contact the daimyo's daughter. However, she thought she was going crazy, and soon the royal family was weakened itself by this new development. Bandits attacked the palanquin bearing the daimyo's family and me, at that time imbedded in the daimyo's daughter's bracelet.

"They took all of the valuables, including my vessel. I was taken to the lead bandit who saw the strange glow of the jewel and thought it had magical powers. He had it put into the hilt of his sword for good luck. However, in the first battle, my chakra somehow made the sword shatter, and the bandit king fell. The jewel, by a stroke of luck, happened to fall into the boot of the victor. The victor travelled by boat across the sea away from the Village Hidden in Snow into the Land of Lightning. I was taken in another boat the rest of the way to the Land of Water. There, I was removed from the man's shoe and found myself dumped into the sand.

"With no one to carry me, I sat for years underneath the sandy ocean shores. At some point a bird, probably some sort of albatross, found me thinking I was some sort of clam, and carried me higher and higher to dash me on a rock. Somehow, I was able to use my power to control the bird somewhat. Since the bird was, well, bird-brained, I was able to control its mind until I was over the newly-formed Village Hidden in Leaves in the Land of Fire. The bird died shortly over the gates of the village, and I found myself almost literally dropped into the Hashirama Senju's lap, the First Hokage.

"From there began my journey to you. I was stolen by his rival, Madara Uchiha, and indirectly handed off to the Uchiha Clan. I found my way to a bright young man named Shisui, but sadly he was killed, and I was dropped into a river. I lay patiently for another year or so until you found me, playing at the river's edge. I waited in silence until the right time to contact you."

* * *

"_That_ _time_, _Hinata_, _is_ _now_. _I_ _beg_ _you_; _release_ _me_ _from_ _this_ _prison_ _so_ _that_ _I_ _can_ _have_ _revenge_ _on_ _that_ _man_ _and_ _save_ _your_ _village_ _as_ _I_ _did_ _mine_ _all_ _those_ _years_ _ago_. _It_ _is_ _long_ _past_ _time_ _for_ _me_ _to_ _settle_ _this_," Nat finished. Hinata's eyes were awed as she went over the amazing story she had just heard.

"There's one thing I don't understand," Hinata said finally.

"_Only_ _one_?" Nat asked, smiling very slightly.

"If eighty years have passed, I understand that you didn't age because you didn't have a body, but what about this man? How come he isn't dead by now?" Hinata asked.

"_I_ _don't_ _know_ _how_ _he_ _did_ _it_. _I_ _would_ _guess_ _he_ _used_ _a_ _Forbidden_ _Jutsu_ _to_ _prolong_ _his_ _life_. _Hinata_, _please_, _all_ _you_ _need_ _to_ _do_ _is_ _shatter_ _this_ _crystal_ _and_ _I_ _will_ _be_ _released_. _We_ _have_ _been_ _sitting_ _idly_ _for_ _too_ _long_; _he_ _is_ _almost_ _upon_ _us_!" Nat warned. "_I_ _need_ _you_ _to_ _understand_ _the_ _severity_ _of_ _the_ _situation_! _Please_, _Hinata_!"

"I understand," Hinata said firmly. Her eyes fell on a rock that lay on the ground nearby. Hinata reached for the rock, planning to crush the crystal underneath, but as her fingers brushed the rock, there was the sudden whistling sound of a kunai knife spinning through the air. Hinata immediately jumped up.

"Byakugan," she said hurriedly, focusing on the spot in the trees. She could see three figures and one knife heading straight for her. A small piece of paper attached to the hilt flared with chakra – a paper bomb. Hinata leapt out of the way and onto the river, and then shielded her eyes with both arms as there was a huge explosion.

"_He's_ _here_," Nat said from underneath Hinata's feet, just under the surface of the water, confirming Hinata's worst fears. Hinata looked back up as soon as the smoke cleared, not fast enough for comfort. The figure appeared as the smoke dissipated, a man smiling smugly at Hinata.

"So this is your bearer, Nat?" he asked with an unfriendly laugh. "A little girl who holds the power of an army at her hands? I think not. Come on, Nat, see the truth! You and I, we could do anything! With your power, I could even bring your parents back to you! Would you like to see your little brother? Hmm?"

"_He_ _lies_," Nat said a little too sharply. "_Hinata_, _listen_ _to_ _me_. _I_ _can_ _lend_ _you_ _some_ _of_ _my_ _strength_, _but_ _he_ _is_ _too_ _strong_ _for_ _you_ _alone_, _I_ _fear_. _I_ _assume_ _you_ _do_ _not_ _know_ _any_ _Ice_ _Style_ _or_ _Water_ _Style_ _Jutsu_? _With_ _my_ _strength_, _an_ _Ice_ _Style_ _Jutsu_ _with_ _me_ _in_ _your_ _reflection_ _could_ _be_ _three_ _times_ _as_ _powerful_."

"No," Hinata whispered. She felt useless and scared. Nat's face in the water hardened, and then she looked away from Hinata.

"_Form_ _the_ _signs_ _I_ _say_," she commanded. Hinata brought her hands up hesitantly and Nat followed her movements in her reflection. "_Dog_, _boar_, _hare_, _dog_, _dragon_, _horse_, _ram_," Nat chanted. Hinata formed the signs as quickly as she could. After a few more signs, finally, Nat nodded satisfactorily.

"_Water_ _Style_; _Thrashing_ _Currents_," Nat said from underneath Hinata's reflection. Hinata's eyes widened as there was a sudden burst of chakra, and the water soared, huge waves leaping out of nowhere. The man at the shore scowled, crossing his arms.

"Is that the best you can do, Nat?" he asked. He leapt into the air to dodge the reaching waves as they tumbled onto shore. Then, as if it was alive, the water arched the opposite way and came for the man from different angles. The man's hands flashed.

"Fire Style; Phoenix Flower Jutsu!" he said. Fire burst into existence, and there was a vicious hissing sound as steam filled the air, and the water retreated. Nat tsked, sounding annoyed, from below Hinata.

"_Hinata_," Nat said suddenly. "_Wait_ _until_ _he_ _lands_ _on_ _the_ _water_. _Can_ _you_ _perform_ _a_ _Shadow_ _Shuriken_ _Jutsu_?"

"No," Hinata said, shaking her head. Nat frowned.

"_All_ _right_. _Just_ _throw_ _a_ _kunai_ _knife_, _then_. _I_ _expect_ _you_ _can_ _do_ _that_ _much_?" Nat asked. Hinata nodded, taking a deep breath as she reached into the pouch at her back.

The man landed on the shore again, and Nat watched him from her strange position.

"_What_ _name_ _do_ _you_ _go_ _by_ _nowadays_?" Nat asked smoothly.

"Saber. Always has been," the man replied, smiling slightly. "You know, Nat, you could've had the world, in the palm of your hand."

"_What_ _if_ _I_ _don't_ _want_ _the_ _world_?" Nat retorted. "_What_ _if_ _I_ _just_ _want_ _a_ _nice_ _little_ _island_ _in_ _the_ _Caribbean_ _with_ _cold_ _pineapple_ _drinks_ _and_ _shirtless_ _beach_ _boys_?"

"Told you, boss!" a cheerful voice called from the tree line behind Saber.

"Why does everyone say that?" Saber demanded. "Fine! You know what, you help me get the world and I'll give you your damn island!"

"_I_ _said_ '_what_ _if_,'" Nat said, annoyed. "_I_ _don't_ _want_ _to_ _take_ _over_ _anything_. _I'm_ _perfectly_ _happy_ _with_ _just_ _being_ _included_ _in_ _the_ _world_. _Contrary_ _to_ _popular_ _belief_, _you_ _don't_ _have_ _to_ _own_ _something_ _to_ _be_ _able_ _to_ _enjoy_ _it_."

"I will use your power anyway," Saber said smoothly. "I just thought to give you a choice. Come over to me, or that girl dies."

"_You'll_ _have_ _to_ _come_ _and_ _get_ _me_," Nat said, crossing her arms in the reflection and looking away. Hinata's hand clasped the hilt of a kunai knife, feeling strangely left out. Of course, she didn't have anything against this Saber guy to begin with.

"You think I'm as stupid as that?" Saber asked with a laugh. "Killer, you get over here so that you can get over there and bring her over here!"

"I'm not stupid either," another voice whined from the trees. Saber growled.

"You know what, Nat? Thanks for the invitation, but parlor tricks won't fool me," he said. He took a step forward, then another, until he was standing on top of the water, concentrating his chakra to the soles of his feet.

"_Ready_, _Hinata_," Nat whispered. Hinata's muscles tensed.

"You'll have to come up with something much, much better," Saber laughed as Hinata pulled the knife. Out of the corner of her eyes, Hinata saw Nat doing the same, being dragged by her movements. Saber advanced suddenly, water spraying from his feet as he rushed forward.

"_Now_, _Hinata_! _Throw_ _it_!" Nat roared. Hinata threw the knife. As she expected, Saber easily jerked up his own knife and hers spun uselessly into the air before plopping into the water. Hinata's reflection in Nat's form threw her knife as Hinata did.

"_Shadow_ _Kunai_ _Jutsu_," Nat said, her eyes flashing fearlessly. Saber's eyes widened momentarily as his steps faltered.

Drip, drip, drip. His eyes were dragged down to the surface of the water, where Nat's reflection kunai knife had neatly pierced his reflection. In his upside-down reflection, blood dripped upwards to stain the surface of the water. His eyes moved slightly upwards to his own chest, where his blood dripped to meet his reflection's blood.

"How…" he faltered. Nat didn't smile, didn't frown, but still somehow radiated smugness. Nat raised another kunai knife.

"_A_ _Shadow_ _Kunai_ _in_ _another_ _person's_ _reflection_," she said slowly. "_I've_ _always_ _wanted_ _to_ _try_ _it_. _You_ _see_, _a_ _reflection_ _is_ _simply_ _a_ _remnant_ _of_ _a_ _person_ _left_ _behind_, _the_ _impression_ _left_ _by_ _that_ _person_. _But_ _then_, _when_ _I_ _have_ _someone_ _who_ _isn't_ _a_ _reflection_ _throwing_ _a_ _knife_…"

"But that shouldn't work!" Saber exclaimed, outraged. "That doesn't make any sense! It's impossible! Unfair! The real knife disappeared! That's just a… just a shadow! You shouldn't be able to do that!"

"_I_ _just_ _did_," Nat pointed out, and threw a second knife. With no choice, Saber dodged the second knife and landed on the shore, his breathing ragged as he yanked the first knife from his chest. He threw it to the ground with a cry of hatred, his eyes burning.

"You'll regret this, Nat," he growled. "I'll be back, and you will give me your power. The world will be in my grasp. When I'm done with you, I'm going to kill you in the most slow, painful way I can think of."

"_I'm_ _already_ _dead_," Nat replied simply. Thwarted once again and with no witty comeback, Saber jumped back, holding his wound with one hand, and disappeared backwards into the trees. Hinata breathed a sigh of relief.

"How did you do that?" She asked wonderingly. Nat shrugged.

"_Genjutsu_, _placed_ _just_ _after_ _I_ _activated_ _the_ _Thrashing_ _Currents_," she replied. "_I_ _had_ _him_ _switch_ _places_ _with_ _his_ _reflection_. _His_ _reflection_ _dodged_ _the_ _reflection_ _kunai_ _knife_ _while_ _the_ _real_ _knife_ _hit_ _its_ _mark_. _He_ _thought_ _he_ _dodged_ _it_, _but_ _he_ _was_ _mistaken_. _The_ '_reflection_ _shadow_ _kunai_' _stuff_ _was_ _just_ _for_ _drama_. _Reflections_ _are_ _powerful_ _things_; _not_ _something_ _to_ _be_ _trifled_ _with_."

"Oh." Hinata didn't quite understand, but she got the gist of it. She looked around for the rock she had seen earlier.

"_Over_ _there_," Nat said, pointing. Hinata's eyes followed the reflection's arm, and Hinata knelt by the shore to retrieve the stone. Hinata hesitantly pulled the necklace from her neck and held it in front of her face, letting the pendant swing slowly back and forth. From the water, Nat nodded.

"_Do_ _it_, _Hinata_," she said softly. Hinata nodded firmly and carefully coiled the necklace into a circle on the ground, the softly-glowing jewel in the center. Hinata raised the rock in her hand, shut her eyes, and brought the rock down hard. There was a short crackling sound, and then, as Hinata opened her eyes, all was still. It was actually rather anticlimactic.

"_Thank_ _you_," Nat said from the water, taking a deep breath. "_I_ _feel_… _better_ _now_." Nat laughed suddenly, tapping the water's surface before her. "_I'll_ _probably_ _be_ _staying_ _around_ _here_ _for_ _a_ _while_, _to_ _keep_ _an_ _eye_ _on_ _Saber_. _If_ _he_ _doesn't_ _know_ _I'm_ _free_, _he_ _could_ _still_ _think_ _you_ _have_ _the_ _jewel_, _in_ _which_ _case_ _you_ _could_ _be_ _in_ _danger_. _I'm_ _sorry_ _about_ _that_, _Hinata_. _You_ _can_ _keep_ _an_ _eye_ _out_ _for_ _me_ _in_ _reflective_ _surfaces_ – _I'm_ _not_ _about_ _to_ _find_ _a_ _body_ _just_ _lying_ _around_. _Thank_ _you_ _for_ _everything_."

"_Oh_," Nat added as an afterthought. "_I_ _realized_ _something_ _just_ _then_, _by_ _the_ _way_. _I'm_ _glad_ _you_ _found_ _my_ _vessel_ _all_ _those_ _years_ _ago_ _at_ _the_ _river's_ _edge_. _If_ _it_ _was_ _anyone_ _but_ _you_, _it_ _probably_ _would_ _not_ _have_ _been_ _so_ _successful_."

"What do you mean?" Hinata asked, frowning slightly. Nat smiled very slightly, nothing more than a ghost of a smile that haunted her lips.

"_He_ _thought_ _you_ _were_ _pretty_," she explained. "_It_ _was_ _distracting_ _to_ _him_ _and_ _gave_ _us_ _an_ _edge_."

Hinata blushed fiercely as her reflection in Nat's form waved, then disappeared as though it had never been there. Hinata was half relieved and half disappointed to see her own reflection in the water. She'd probably actually sort of miss Nat.

Oh, well. Hinata gathered the chain from the ground, and then stood up slowly. Chain in hand, a smile on her face, Hinata headed down the river back towards the village in high spirits. Now she had some things to do for her comrades, because Kiba was probably getting hungry.


	4. Out of the Woods

Chapter Four

Out of the Woods

"An almanac on Konohagakure bridges and a book on ramen-ology…"

Sakura turned slightly to see none other than Naruto Uzumaki, her Squad Seven teammate, entering the library. She got over her initial surprise pretty quickly, considering, and immediately raced over to meet him, dead curious.

"Naruto!" she exclaimed. "You're getting books! Good for you!"

"They're for Hinata," Naruto confessed. Sakura shrugged.

"Oh, well. A girl can dream. Hey, what do you need? I'll help you find them."

Naruto thought for a moment.

"An almanac on Konohagakure bridges and a book on ramen-ology," he said finally. Sakura frowned. "I don't know what an almanac is," Naruto continued sheepishly.

"Why would Hinata be interested in…'ramen-ology?'" Sakura asked doubtfully. "And an almanac of Konohagakure bridges? You mean just a book about the bridges around here? Hmm… I wonder why she'd need something like that…"

Naruto shrugged.

"Can you help me find them?" he asked eagerly. "It'll be like a date!"

Sakura scowled.

"No dates," she said firmly. "But yes, I can help you find books on these subjects. I think, anyway. I'm not actually sure where I can find a book on ramen… I suppose where cookbooks and such would be…"

"Thank you, Sakura-chan!" Naruto said. Sakura turned and headed down an aisle of books and Naruto eagerly followed. He didn't care if this wasn't a date. He got to do something nice for Hinata and spend time with Sakura at the same time, and that was perfectly satisfactory to him.

* * *

"Why weren't you idiots backing me up?" Saber panted as Duke danced around him to wind the bandages around his chest. Killer hung his head.

"You were doing fine, sir," Duke said, tucking the end of the bandage into the rest of it with flair. "We didn't feel the need to bother you; not in the middle of your evil monologue. Very important for looks, an evil monologue…"

"Shut up, fool," Saber spat, slapping Duke's hands away. He got up. "I can't believe this," he snarled. "Bested by Nat once again, and she didn't even have a body! I hate that girl _so_ much…"

"Now, now; a gentleman should never hit a woman," Duke said philosophically, one hand in the air. Saber shot him a dangerous look.

"I killed her once and I'll gladly do it again," Saber said, shaking a fist. "That girl cost me my world, and she won't be forgiven."

Rather than pointing out that the world was never his to begin with, Duke remained silent.

"You two," Saber said suddenly, turning around. "They don't know what you two look like. All you have to do is get ahold of a Konohagakure hitai-ate, or maybe an Anbu mask, and get me Nat's host. Find out what you can about their defenses in the meantime, and make sure you go undetected!"

"Now, sir?" Duke asked, surprised.

"Yes, now!" Saber shrieked. Duke and Killer tripped over each other in an effort to get to the door, and the door slammed behind them both. Saber slowly sat back in his chair. Cheap or not, he'd need to replace those two imbeciles sooner or later.

* * *

Hinata hummed to herself as she headed down the street. Kiba and Shino had left already from the spot she had avoided them in earlier, so Hinata turned and instead headed back towards her house. She wondered if they had noticed her missing yet. Naruto might not have, because it hadn't been that long, but she was almost certain that Neji would have found something fishy. Hinata wasn't sure what she could do once he figured out she was gone, although the fact that he hadn't found her yet was a good sign.

Hinata felt better than she had that morning, and certainly better than a few hours ago. She felt somewhat relieved that it was all over, the possibility that Saber could still try to find her shoved deeply into the back of her thoughts. She still thought of Nat, though. Was there any way Nat could get another body? Like Nat had mentioned, bodies don't grow on trees. It was highly improbable that Nat would find anything to inhabit.

A life in reflections… Hinata wasn't sure how that made her feel, but it was certainly sad. It must be terrible just living in a rock for eighty years without a body, but then to be freed after long last and find yourself still stuck in reflections. By the sound of it, Nat would still be happier than she would've been otherwise, but it still bothered Hinata. Wasn't there anything they could do? Maybe Nat could inhabit a puppet or something?

Hinata was still thinking about it as she entered the yard of her house, took her shoes off, and thoughtlessly opened the door to head down the hall to her room. Immediately, Neji's head came around. He frowned slightly. Hinata smiled somewhat sheepishly. Oh, right; she was supposed to be inside the room.

"I was just going out for a breath of fresh air," Hinata said.

"You're all wet," Neji pointed out. Hinata looked down at herself. Maybe she had gotten wet from Nat's water style Jutsu and not noticed?

"I'm sorry," she apologized. Neji smiled slightly.

"You don't need to apologize for being wet. Go change into something dry before you catch a cold," he suggested. Hinata smiled gratefully and headed past him and into the door, closing the screen slowly behind her. Neji watched the door for a moment, and then turned back. How could he not have noticed Hinata slipping past him? The only possibility he could think of would be if she left through the window, and he didn't have a clue for why she'd do something like that.

Then again, perhaps Hinata was sicker than she seemed. Neji's frown deepened. If Hinata really was at the breaking point, it could be a problem. First of all, how would her father react? Maybe it was something more serious than just being tired. Maybe she really should be in the hospital instead of at home. With these thoughts and thoughts like them running through Neji's head, Neji turned to leave. It sounded like he would need to talk to the Hokage.

* * *

Two men wearing Leaf Village headbands stood to attention as someone walked by, giving them an odd look. One of them turned confidentially to the other.

"Hey, Duke; you think maybe Leaf Village ninja are less like soldiers and more like assassins?" he whispered. The other man shrugged.

"We'll need to use names," he whispered back. The first man nodded thoughtfully.

"I'll be… let's see… you can call me Jiraiya, after the great Sannin and Toad Sage, and you can be… who can you be?"

"I'll be Susano, after the goddess Amaterasu's brother," Duke replied. "That's cool, see. I'll call you Killer in private, and you can call me Duke, but in public I'm Susano. Are you sure you want to be Jiraiya? I heard he was a shameless pervert. I could be mistaken. Hey, that might be better… what if we disguised ourselves as women instead? I've always wanted to see what it's like being a girl. We can use the Transformation Jutsu."

"You in a dress?" Killer said, frowning as he tried to imagine something like that. He looked doubtful. "Well, okay, but you'll need a girl name, then. You can't be Susano if you're a girl. Oh, hey, I'll be Susano, your boyfriend, and you'll be my girlfriend, er… Duchess."

"Duchess?" Duke said thoughtfully. He nodded. "That'd work. Okay, no one's around right now, so… Transform!"

There was a poof. Killer coughed as the cloud cleared away, revealing a bored-looking teenager with multiple piercings and black lipstick. Her hair was died in various shades of dark purple and magenta, heavy chains adorned her neck, and she wore a short black kimono with a corset obi and high boots. Killer blinked.

"I wouldn't date someone who looked like that," he said.

"No?" Duke asked, frowning. "I've always wanted to be punk. All right, here, let's try… female teacher!"

There was another poof, and an older woman looking much more normal appeared. Killer nodded. "I might date someone like that, if she shaved her legs."

Duke looked down.

"Oh, okay, yeah, I can change it. Hold on a minute, I'll just…"

"Hey, you two!" someone exclaimed. Duke and Killer jumped to attention, saluting as a man appeared walking straight towards them. He frowned. "What are you guys, medical ninja, Intel division, tactical division, instructors, goofballs, what?"

"I'm a teacher," Duke said quickly in an obvious falsetto, pointing to himself. He turned to Killer. "This is my lovely adorable boyfriend, Susano, named after the sun goddess Amaterasu's brother. I am a woman, as you can see."

"Right," the man said, looking puzzled. "So what's with the get-up? You guys going on a big mission or something?"

"I told you the battle armor would be a problem," Duke whispered under his breath.

"Of course it would, you're a woman," Killer whispered back. He cleared his throat. "Actually, we're… er…"

"Doing the Great Ninja War reenactments today, as part of the teaching experience," Duke spoke up, fluttering his eyelashes coquettishly. "I'm a teacher, so we're wearing the costumes for realistic feeling, you know. A _man_ like you just wouldn't understand." He stuck his nose up loftily in a perfect imitation of a headstrong woman who has the feeling she's being made fun of.

"Come now, Duchess, darling," Killer said awkwardly. "Er… we've got to… get you your new kitchen. Really important to ladies, the kitchen, you know."

"The kitchen can wait!" Duke screeched. He was having far too much fun to let it go now. "Look at your hair! It's a disgrace, and to think I only just noticed!" Killer looked up and fingered his shaggy hairdo. Duke shook his head and crossed his arms. "You need a haircut," he announced, and took ahold of Killer's ear.

"You're not my _mother_," Killer grumbled as Duke dragged him off, leaving the ninja staring after them in disbelief. The ninja shook his head and left, trying to get that horrible image out of his head. He had never known women could have such hairy legs…

* * *

Nat sat on the reflection of a log mulling over her problems. If Saber didn't know that she was free, he would definitely be after Hinata. Hinata needed some sort of bodyguard, but Nat couldn't think of anyone she could ask. They were ninja, so chances were no one would faint upon seeing her, but a moving reflection might still be a little shocking. Nat looked up as a fish swimming below her disrupted her image. She could've sworn she saw something. Immediately, she ducked underneath a floating leaf to hide herself from view. There was the crackling of footsteps.

"If you want something done right, you've got to do it yourself," murmured the familiar voice of Saber. Nat peeked out from behind the leaf and saw the man, his chest bound firmly in messy bandages, as he made his way painfully through the trees. Nat had to warn somebody. She remembered Hinata's friends, the boy with the dog and the boy with the sunglasses from before. Maybe they could help?

Nat headed towards the village without a second thought on her mind but the necessity for speed and the urgency of this mission. She could try Hinata's home first. If they weren't there, Nat didn't know what she would do. She thought desperately about anything she could do – as far as she could tell, she could only use a fraction of her strength without a vessel. She wasn't going to find a dead body just lying around, so all that was left was reflections for now.

As she passed the reflection of a weed leaning over the river, she suddenly stopped and flew back one to see eyes staring down at her. They were not human eyes. An accusing meow burbled over Nat's ears and a paw, claws sheathed, batted at her picture, sending ripples throughout Nat's form. All at once, an idea came to mind. Nat smiled.

"_Here_, _kitty_, _kitty_," she murmured, arms held out for the cat. She launched herself with all her strength, and her image shot from the water to grab ahold of the small mammal. Without waiting for a word of permission, the cat's mind was easily subdued, and the new host then flew across the land gracefully in the direction of the village.

* * *

Naruto Uzumaki was proudly heading down the street with two books in hand. The first was about as fat as his head (which was saying something) and the second was a thinner volume that said 'Ramen-ology; the Art and Science of Modern Ramen' along the spine. He reached the gate to the Hyuuga estate and paused, looking down at his hands, which were full of book.

"Need a hand?" a voice asked. Naruto grinned sheepishly as a dark shape darted up and the gate was unlocked. The shape pushed the door open. "After you."

"Thanks," Naruto said, and entered the yard. It was only until a moment later that he realized what had just happened. He turned around in time to see a cat leap by him through the open gate in the direction of the Hyuuga house. Naruto paled. "Hey, hey!" he called. "Cat, you can't come in here, believe it! Get—"

He stopped when the cat stopped at the sliding front door to turn and give Naruto a smoldering glare. Naruto cringed.

"Er… I guess you can't do much harm," he said as an afterthought. The cat seemed to look him up and down. At last, having passed the preliminary inspection, the cat hopped off the porch and raced to his side.

"You there," it said. Naruto blinked. "You are a friend of Hinata Hyuuga, am I correct?"

"You talked!" Naruto exclaimed, leaping backward. He accidentally dropped both books in hand, and a certain reference volume that contained information about bridges landed on Naruto's delicate foot. This surprised him even more than the talking cat (for talking toads were the norm for Naruto) and he screamed as he hopped around on one foot, tears of pain running down his face.

The front door slid open and Hinata appeared, startled by the scream. She took in Naruto, the books, and the cat, who was giving the feline version of a face-palm. The cat whipped around, spotting Hinata, and brightened.

"Hinata!" it said, rushing over. "Hinata, it's me, Nat! There's not much time to explain, but Saber is still after you! It seems his two goons didn't do the job, and he'll be here any minute! I rushed over as soon as I could… thank heavens you're unharmed…"

"Hinata?" Naruto asked, frowning slightly as he gingerly tested his weight on his injured foot. "I got the books you wanted… uh… do you know this cat?"

"Oh, yes," Hinata said quickly, blushing slightly as she looked from the cat to Naruto and back to the cat, trying to figure out what was going on in front of her. "I'm so sorry she startled you… are you okay? Did you hurt your foot? Oh, come inside for some ice before it swells up!"

"I'm fine," Naruto said, shaking his head. "What did the cat say about some Saber guy? Someone's after you?"

"Oh…" Hinata looked at her feet. "It's… it's a long story. Um… Naruto-kun, this is Nat, Nat, this is Naruto Uzumaki. If I remember correctly, you weren't always a cat…"

"Desperate times call for desperate measures," Nat said dismissively with a wave of her tail. "Anyway, it isn't half bad except for the sushi craving, the somewhat unique outlook on baths that I really can't explain without using some strong language, and the urgent need to caterwaul at the most embarrassing moments. Listen, Hinata, this is no time to be joking around! Saber's on his way here, and I don't even know where the two guys that work for him are. You need to get somewhere safe!"

"Hinata?" Naruto demanded. Hinata put her hands over her ears and shut her eyes tight, trying to keep focused as she processed the information. She couldn't think with those two yelling at her. Finally, she understood what the Nat-cat had been trying to say. She opened her eyes once more.

"We need to talk to the Hokage," she said firmly.

"Okay, lead the way, but quickly," Nat said urgently, looking towards the gate with her ears pricked. "I don't know how he got in without your Shinobi noticing… where are your friends, the stinky dog lover and the one who looks like a terrorist?"

Hinata thought for a moment.

"Oh, you mean Kiba-kun and Shino-kun? I don't know," she replied honestly. She didn't know where Neji had gone, either. He had left a little while back, heading in the direction of the Hokage's office, and hadn't come back yet.

"So it's only you, me, and the stupid kid," Nat clarified.

"Hey," Naruto objected.

"Well, get going," Nat said, shoving against his legs. She gave little to no force in her host body and growled when Naruto didn't move. She tried her next course of action, which was to bite his ankle. As soon as she dove forward and her little teeth closed around Naruto's shoe, he yelped and was out the gate in seconds, Hinata following somewhat confusedly. Nat raced after the both of them, keeping her eyes peeled for any sign of Saber.

"Keep moving," she snapped.

"Where are we going?" Hinata asked breathlessly. Nat considered this.

"The Hokage," she said as though it was obvious, although she had only just decided. "We have to explain what's going on. They might not believe me."

"Oh, but there are ninja cats all the time," Hinata said eagerly. "There are cats and dogs and turtles and birds and frogs, all of which can talk. It's not strange to see a talking cat, so I'm sure the Hokage won't be surprised."

"I'm not worried about that," Nat explained, shaking her head. "Take this side street."

The three of them turned the corner.

"You see, I'm also dead," Nat pointed out. "I'm sort of dead and sort of a cat, which is sort of an oxymoron if you think about it with the ghost thing and the wailing and whatnot. The thought was actually only appealing until the first three years had come and gone. After that, I'd have much preferred mooning people from third story windows to rattling chains outside doors. You'd be surprised how much your perspective of the world changes when your soul is locked in a rock for eighty years. Gosh, I feel so old."

"You're not old," Hinata said graciously. The cat gave a crooked grin.

"Thanks," she said. "But I'm old enough to be your great-great-grandmother… maybe just one great. Hey, wouldn't that be so cool if I really was related to you?"

"Didn't you say you were sixteen?" Hinata asked curiously.

"Yes, I know," Nat snapped. The cat growled. "I'm going to get Saber, and I'm… I'm going to tie him down and claw out his eyeballs, and then I'll… then I'll force him to eat dry cat food with no water until he _meow_s… oh, for the love of mahi-mahi, I mean dies, until he dies to death!"

"Isn't that generally how dead someone gets when they die?" Naruto asked, frowning.

"Right, because I'm not dead enough, is that what you're saying?" Nat's fur bristled, and her lips peeled back from her sharp teeth. "I'm craving canary right now, too. This is an unhealthy transformation, you know. I've never been so humiliated in all my life. Look at me! No, don't look at me; I'm stark naked!"

Naruto's eyes snuck a glance almost of their own accord. Of course she was naked. She was a cat. Naruto didn't find anything funny about a naked cat. A clothed cat, now, that would be weird.

As they rounded another corner, Hinata ran straight into someone waiting on the other side. They both began to apologize, and then Hinata recognized him.

"Neji-kun," she said with relief. Neji smiled.

"Out of bed already, Hinata?" he asked. Hinata's subconscious noted distantly that something was slightly off, but she dismissed it as her imagination.

"I feel much better," she said gratefully. She remembered why she was there. "Oh! Neji-kun, I think enemy ninja infiltrated Leaf Village! What should we do?"

Neji's eyes paused on Hinata's neck. "You're not wearing the necklace with the little stone on it today? Did you leave it at home?"

"What?" Hinata was puzzled. "Oh. The necklace broke, but that isn't important right now. Neji-kun, we're all in terrible danger! I need to find the Hokage."

"She's not home," Neji said casually. He reached out and put a hand on Hinata's shoulder. "Come on, Hinata, we should head home. It's getting late. Say goodbye to your friends."

Without warning, a streak of black shot past Hinata and fangs sunk deep into Neji's forearm. He leaped back with a howl of pain, looking down in disgust at the cat that hung determinedly off of his arm. He shook his arm desperately, but Nat still hung on. Hinata's hands flew to her mouth at the same time Naruto leaped forward to pull the cat off of Neji.

There was a poof. Hinata jumped back in surprise. The arm that Nat hung from was no longer Neji's, but the arm belonging to a familiar person – Saber. His eyes were full of rage as he slammed his arm against the wall and Nat was forced to release him. She dropped to the ground and limped back towards Hinata.

"What… how…" Hinata was at a loss for words. The whole time, it was Saber, not Neji?

"You can change your looks, but you can't change the stink of murderous intent," Nat snarled, licking her bloodstained whiskers. Saber held his tattered arm to his chest, a look of loathing written in bold across his face.

"You broke the necklace," he growled. "You… I'm going to kill you, you bi—"

And Saber was hit full-force with Naruto Uzumaki's Rasengan. There was a moment of shocked silence as the loose ends of the bandages that wound around Saber's chest were thrown around in a chakra wind flurry before Saber was thrown backward at an impossible speed, his eyes still wide in disbelief, and slammed into the wall so hard that the wall shattered, sending spider-webbing cracks up the sides of the building.

Hinata shielded herself with her hands as rocks rained over the three of them, Nat taking cover in an overturned garbage can. Before she even knew what was happening, she was in Naruto's arms as he shielded her from the small, sharp stones that smarted where they hit. Hinata flushed bright pink, and her vision swirled. Her knees felt weak, and the next thing she knew, everything turned black.

* * *

"Hinata, are you okay?"

"Honestly, Hinata. How do you expect kunoichi to be respected when you give kunoichi a bad name by acting like that? Naruto, stop shaking her – she just fainted. Hinata, wake up right now or I'll bite your nose off."

Hinata woke up quite suddenly at this threat. She blinked in the light.

"You're okay," Naruto said, relieved. Hinata sat up slowly. Nat sat beside her, her golden cat eyes meeting Hinata's pale lavender. The cat looked somewhat relieved despite having been willing to bite Hinata's nose off moments before as a wake-up call, although perhaps the fact that she didn't have to was the very reason she was relieved.

"I-I'm fine," Hinata stammered, flushing bright red once more. Naruto had actually hugged her, protecting her from the rain of boulders! Well… technically it wasn't a hug, and they weren't boulders so much as pebbles on the large side, but he had had his _arms_ around her. Hinata had been in Naruto Uzumaki's _arms_. Before Hinata could faint again, Nat's tail tickled her nose and reminded her why she had woken up in the first place.

"I'm up," she said quickly, getting unsteadily to her feet. Everything swirled and for a moment she teetered, but Naruto was there to steady her. Hinata was so dreadfully embarrassed that she almost fainted again regardless of being faced with the possibility of waking up nose-less.

"Oh!" she said suddenly, remembering. "Saber—"

"The kid took him down," Nat said frostily, not meeting Naruto's eyes. "It was by sheer luck, let me tell you. Plus, he was already injured, you know, and he couldn't form signs because I totally mauled his arm, so he was a really easy target. Duh."

"Hey! I got him fair and square, believe it!" Naruto protested loudly. Nat scowled, her whiskers twitching.

"Hey," she said meaningfully. "I'm a possessed cat. You don't want to see me when I'm angry. Believe that."

"Guys, guys," Hinata said weakly. "What about the two guys with him? What are we going to do about them?"

"Hinata and I will find them," Nat said quickly, hopping nimbly to her feet. "Naruto, you go report to the Hokage on the double. Hinata and I will bring them down, no problem. Give us half an hour – I mean, fifteen minutes. Fifteen minutes is all we need, to take down _both_ of them."

"That won't be necessary."

Everyone turned around suddenly, and Hinata's breath caught in her throat before a relieved smile split her face. It was the Hokage, Lady Tsunade, standing there with a smile on her face. Shizune and Neji stood beside her and two Anbu members stood behind. Tsunade stepped forward, over Saber's unconscious form, which was collected immediately and wordlessly by the masked Anbu Black Ops members.

"Anko caught two suspicious-looking individuals at the hairdresser's," Tsunade explained. "They were both men, but one was a man who was using the transformation Jutsu to look like a woman. They were caught easily and the man who had disguised himself as a woman 'repented of his crimes' as soon as he saw Anko. I think he's still telling her how much her face outshines the moon or whatnot. Anyway, they confessed rather easily and explained the whole story."

"Well, glad that's settled," Nat said, sitting back on her haunches with a sigh. "Man, I want to rest in peace so badly right now. Peace… silence… tea… I forgot the meaning of the words!"

Tsunade glanced down at the cat in surprise.

"Who's this?" she asked. Nat's jaw dropped.

"You… you don't know who… so," Nat spluttered. "Those _dimwits_ told you everything that happened except about _me_? Oh, I'll murder them! My paws are burning just thinking about it! I, madam, am the victim here! They killed me and I'm going to get them back!"

Tsunade knelt to examine the small feline a little more closely. "You're a cat," she said.

"How very astute of you," Nat growled. "Well, I wasn't a cat this morning!"

"A boy cat," Tsunade continued. "But you speak like a human female…" Nat froze in horror.

"Oh, gosh, no!" she exclaimed. "Oh, no! Please, no! It's all a dream! Tell me this is all just a horrible nightmare! I'm going to wake up and I'm going to be human! And a girl! And actually dead! I'm going to kill someone! MROW IT ALL TO CAT HELL!"

* * *

~ Epilogue ~

* * *

And so peace was once more restored to Konoha – relatively. There was a certain boy cat running around who occasionally talked, cursed, and enjoyed a pastime including rattling chains under people's chairs. Whenever you asked anything personal, the cat would spit in your face and reply, 'Don't expect a lady to give away her secrets that easily!'

Ichiraku was cleaned out of fish crackers often until he finally got used to the cat hanging around his ramen shop (to bug Naruto, most of the time). Nat, for in case you hadn't guessed, that was the cat, also visited Hinata frequently as well as enjoyed chasing dogs up trees for a change. After all – she was going to give a good name to all male ninja cats who were really spirits of dead girls around the world. There weren't many, and they were unheard of, so people were curious when a search showed up in the newspaper:

**Male ninja cats who are really spirits of dead girls around the world, unite! Ichiraku ramen shop at midnight. Bring a water-dwelling offering (fish) for the potluck meal and a gift (also fish… or at least something vaguely fish-flavored) for the hostess. Don't be late. – Nat**

As for Killer and Duke, well… we'd best leave that as a story for another time.

* * *

The End


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